JP2011525969A - Method and configuration in communication system - Google Patents

Abstract

A method and a configuration in a base station, a user equipment, and a position determination node that respectively transmit and acquire a value of signal propagation delay. The signal is transmitted from the user equipment to the base station. Base stations and user equipment are included in the wireless communication system. The base station and the user equipment exchange radio signals. The method is characterized by receiving a signal transmitted from a user equipment. The method is further characterized by measuring the value of the signal propagation delay of the received signal. Furthermore, the method is characterized by transmitting the measured value to the user equipment and / or to a positioning node included in the wireless communication system.

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and configuration in a base station, a method and configuration in a user equipment, and / or a method and configuration in a location determination node. More specifically, the present invention relates to a mechanism for obtaining a signal propagation delay value.

  Currently, there is a proliferation of standardized and commercially deployed radio access technologies. Such radio access technologies include GSM (Global System for Mobile communications), EDGE (Enhanced Data Rates for GSM Evolution), GPRS (General Packet Radio System), WCDMA (Wide-band Code Division Multiple Access), LTE (Long Term Evolution) system, WLAN (Wireless Local Area Networks), CDMA2000, and the like.

  Location determination in a communication system including the above or other techniques can be performed in a wide variety of ways. A typical approach is to provide a request for position determination. If the positioning information is not already available, some measurement can be made and the positioning data reported to the node responsible for the actual positioning.

  The fingerprint location algorithm works by creating a wireless fingerprint for each point of a fine coordinate grid that covers the wireless access network. The fingerprint may include, for example, a cell ID detected by the terminal for each grid point, and a quantum path loss or signal strength measurement value for a plurality of radio base stations performed by the terminal for each grid point.

  Whenever a location request arrives, a wireless fingerprint is first calculated based on various parameters that need to be measured. The corresponding grid points are then retrieved and reported. This requires that the points are unique. The main problem with this approach is that it requires extensive research to create a fingerprint database. In general, additional parameter measurements and additional signaling must be performed.

  Thus, a problem with existing location determination methods is to generate a unique radio fingerprint without spending too much radio resources for measurement and signaling. In general, additional parameter measurements and additional signaling affect the overall system load, thus reducing capacity.

  Thus, the problem with existing location determination methods is to generate a unique wireless fingerprint without spending too much radio resources on the survey.

  Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide an improved measurement mechanism for a communication system.

  According to a first aspect, the problem is achieved by a method in a base station that transmits a value of signal propagation delay. The signal is transmitted from the user equipment to the base station. User equipment is associated with a location point. Base stations and user equipment are included in the wireless communication system. The base station and the user equipment exchange radio signals. When the base station receives a signal from the user equipment, the signal propagation delay value of the received signal is measured. The measured value is transmitted to the user equipment and / or to a positioning node included in the wireless communication system.

  Moreover, according to the 2nd viewpoint, a subject is achieved by the structure in a base station. This configuration is configured to signal the value of the signal propagation delay. The signal is transmitted from the user equipment to the base station. User equipment is associated with a location point. Base stations and user equipment are included in the wireless communication system. The base station and the user equipment exchange radio signals. This configuration includes a receiving unit, a measuring unit, and a transmitting unit. The receiving unit is configured to receive a signal, and the measuring unit is configured to measure the value of the signal propagation delay of the received signal. The measured value is transmitted to the user equipment and / or to the position determination node included in the wireless communication system by a corresponding transmitter.

  According to a third aspect, the problem is achieved by a method in a user equipment for obtaining a value of signal propagation delay. The signal is transmitted to the base station. User equipment is associated with a location point. Further, user equipment and base stations are included in the wireless communication system. User equipment and base stations exchange radio signals. The user equipment transmits a signal to the base station and receives a signal propagation delay value of the transmitted signal.

  Moreover, according to the 4th viewpoint, a subject is achieved by the structure in a user apparatus. In this configuration, the value of the propagation delay of the signal transmitted to the base station is acquired. User equipment is associated with a location point. User equipment and base stations are included in the wireless communication system. User equipment and base stations exchange radio signals. This configuration includes a transmission unit and a reception unit. The transmitter is assumed to transmit a signal to the base station, and the receiver is assumed to receive a signal propagation delay value of the transmitted signal.

  According to a fifth aspect, the problem is achieved by a method in a positioning node that obtains a value of signal propagation delay. The signal is transmitted from the user equipment to the base station. User equipment is associated with a location point. User equipment, base stations, and location determination nodes are included in the wireless communication system. Further, the user equipment, the base station, and the position determination node exchange radio signals. The value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal is received from the base station.

  Moreover, according to the 6th viewpoint, a subject is achieved by the structure in a position determination node. In this configuration, the value of the signal propagation delay is acquired. The signal is transmitted from the user equipment to the base station. User equipment is associated with a location point. User equipment, base stations, and location determination nodes are included in the wireless communication system. Further, the user equipment, the base station, and the position determination node exchange radio signals. This configuration features a receiver. The receiving unit receives the value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal.

  Thanks to the measurement of the signal propagation time according to the method, measured for the user equipment location point, and the transmission of the measurement made by any of the solutions, a suitable and unique radio while reducing the overhead signaling involved. Fingerprints can be generated. As such, an improved measurement mechanism is provided in a wireless communication system.

  One of the effects of the present solution is that the user equipment can accurately determine the position of the user equipment based on the fingerprint position determination.

  Another advantage of this solution is that one-way propagation delays can be reported to the user equipment and the location node while reducing signaling overhead.

  Yet another advantage of the present solution is that the position of the user equipment can be determined with high accuracy by network-based fingerprint position determination.

  The invention will now be described in more detail with reference to the enclosed drawings.

1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system according to some embodiments. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a wireless communication system according to some embodiments. It is a schematic block diagram which shows the example of a component of the base station which concerns on some embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating example components of a user equipment according to some embodiments. FIG. 2 is a schematic block diagram illustrating a user equipment according to some embodiments. User equipment is implemented as a cellular phone. FIG. 2 is a combination of signaling and flowcharts illustrating wireless signal transmission according to some embodiments. 6 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the present method in a base station according to some embodiments. It is a schematic block diagram which shows one structure in the base station which concerns on some embodiment. 6 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method in a user equipment according to some embodiments. It is a schematic block diagram which shows one structure in the user equipment which concerns on some embodiment. 6 is a schematic flowchart illustrating an embodiment of the method in a location determination node according to some embodiments. It is a schematic block diagram which shows one structure in the position determination node which concerns on some embodiment.

  This method is defined as a method and configuration in a base station, a method and configuration in a user equipment, and a method and configuration in a location determination node, and can be realized in the embodiments described below. However, the invention can be implemented in a wide variety of forms and should not be considered limited to the embodiments described herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the invention to those skilled in the art.

  Other objects and features of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, it is understood that the drawings are drawn for purposes of illustration only and are not intended to describe the scope of the invention, which should be referred to the appended claims for the scope of the invention. I want. In addition, the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale unless stated to the extent that they are to scale, but are merely intended to conceptually illustrate the structure and procedure described here. I want you to understand.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic block diagram illustrating an example wireless communication system 100 according to some embodiments. The wireless communication system 100 includes one or more first nodes 110, one or more second nodes 120 and 130, and a network 135. The wireless communication system 100 may optionally include a location determination node 140 and a geographic information system (GIS) server 150 connected to the network 135.

  It will be appreciated that the number of components shown in FIG. 1 is purely exemplary. In addition, a configuration with more components, a configuration with fewer components, and a configuration with different components can be implemented. Further, in some embodiments, one or more of the components of FIG. 1 may be performed as described by one or more other components of FIG.

  The first node 110 may be, for example, a base station, an access point, a NodeB, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), and / or a base transceiver station, an access point base station, a base station router, etc., for example, depending on the radio access technology and terminology used There is. In the following description, the term “base station” is used for the first node 110 to facilitate understanding of the method and configuration. In FIG. 1, the first node 110 is represented by base stations 110-1, 110-2, 110-3, 110-4, 110-5, ..., 110-n.

  The second nodes 120 and 130 are, for example, user equipment, wireless communication terminals, mobile cellular phones, personal communication system terminals, personal digital assistants (PDAs), laptops, computers, or base stations 110 in the network 135. It can be expressed by other types of devices that can manage wireless resources that can be wirelessly communicated with. A personal communication system terminal can combine a data processing function, a facsimile function, and a data communication function with a cellular radiotelephone. The PDA may include a wireless phone, pager, internet / intranet access device, web browser, organizer, calendar, and / or global positioning system (GPS) receiver. One or more examples of the second nodes 120, 130 may be “pervasive computing” devices. In some embodiments, the second nodes 120, 130 can be represented by telephones connected to a public switched telephone network. However, in the following description, the term “user equipment” is consistently used for the second nodes 120, 130 to facilitate understanding of the method and configuration. In FIG. 1, the second nodes 120 and 130 are represented by a first user device 120 and a second user device 130. The first user device 120 can communicate with other devices such as the second user device 130 and other devices not shown via the network 135 in the wireless communication system 100.

  In one embodiment, the first user equipment 120 communicates with the second user equipment 130 via one or more other nodes that operate as an intermediate device between the first user equipment 120 and the second user equipment 130. it can. For example, as shown in FIG. 1, the base station 110-1 can have a radio base station function, and as an intermediate component of the network 135, user equipment 120, 130, for example, a location It can be used to facilitate end-to-end communication with decision node 140 and GIS server 150. Additional base stations 110-2 to 110 -N may be included in the network 135.

  Base stations 110-1 to 110-n can interface with respective user equipments 120 and 130. For example, the base station 110-1 interfaces with the first user equipment 120 via the respective radio links, and in particular, functions of medium access control (MAC) and radio link control (RLC). It can be carried out.

  The position determination node 140 can determine the positions of the user equipments 120 and 130 in the wireless communication system 100. The positioning node 140 is associated with a radio fingerprint database 160 that stores radio fingerprints obtained from, for example, E-UTRAN (Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access Network) and / or IRAT (Inter-Radio Access Technology) measurement data. be able to. The database 160 can be internal to the location node 140 or external, and can be remotely connected to the location node 140 in some embodiments. E-UTRAN and / or IRAT measurement data is located together with precise geolocation data obtained at the same location as the E-UTRAN and / or IRAT measurement was made, eg GPS geolocation data. Node 140 can be provided. Also, the location node 140 can organize precise geolocation data into clusters with the same or similar wireless fingerprints. The location determination node 140 can further determine cluster boundaries for each class and store cluster boundary information and precise geolocation data associated with the wireless fingerprint in the wireless fingerprint database 160. The location node 140 subsequently receives E-UTRAN and / or IRAT radio fingerprint measurement data from the first user equipment 120 and / or the second user equipment 130, performs a search of the radio fingerprint database 160, and receives it. Identifying the radio fingerprint stored in database 160 that matches the E-UTRAN and / or IRAT radio fingerprint measurement data and retrieving the precise geographic location stored in database 160 corresponding to the matched radio fingerprint it can. Alternatively, relevant cluster boundary information is extracted. The location node 140 can provide this geographic location to the user equipment 120, 130 that transmitted the wireless fingerprint measurement data, or to other destinations such as an emergency call center or police call center.

  The GIS server 150 may include one or more server bodies that provide a geographic mapping service and an associated mapping service. The GIS server 150 receives the geolocation data related to the user equipment 120, 130 from the location determination node 140 or the user equipment 120, 130, maps the received geolocation data to physical coordinates or physical addresses, or relates to the geolocation data. Other mapping related services can be performed.

  The network 135 includes a LAN (Local Area Network), a WAN (Wide Area Network), a MAN (Metropolitan Area Network), a PSTN (Public Switched Telephone Network) and a PLMN (Public Land Mobile Network), a telephone network, a satellite network, an intranet, Any type of network can include one or more, including the Internet, or a combination of the above and other networks. The PLMN can further include a packet switching sub-network such as GPRS (General Packet Radio Service), CDPD (Cellular Digital Packet Data), and a mobile IP network.

  Radio access technologies used for radio communication in the radio communication system 100 include, for example, CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), WCDMA (Wideband Code Division Multiple Access), CDMA2000, HSDPA (High Speed Downlink Packet Data Access), HDR (High Data Technology), but only a few examples.

  As used herein, the wireless communication system 100 can reference various radio access technologies without departing from the teachings of the present invention. These wireless access technologies include, for example, wireless access technologies such as LTE, EDGE, GPRS, GSM, HSPA, and UMTS, and / or WLANs such as WiFi (Wireless Fidelity), WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access), and Bluetooth. It may be included or in accordance with any other wireless communication standard.

  FIG. 2 shows an example of the wireless communication system 100 of FIG. 1, and the wireless communication system 100 includes a PLMN. The PLMN can implement the LTE system architecture. As shown in FIG. 2, user equipment 120, 130 may include cellular radiotelephones communicating with each other via the PLMN. The PLMN may include a plurality of base stations 110-1 to 110 -N and its associated antenna array and one or more gateways 210. The gateway 210 can be further connected to a packet data network (PDN) 220 of the system 100. The PDN 220 can further connect to an optional location determination node 140 and an optional GIS server 150. PDN 220 may include any type of packet switched network, such as the Internet.

  Base stations 110-1 to 110-N can interface with respective user equipments 120 and 130. For example, the base station 110-1 can interface with the user equipment 120 via respective radio links and perform media access control (MAC) and radio link control (RLC) functions, among others. For example, the base station 110-1 can receive data signals from the first user equipment 120 and transfer these data signals to the gateway 210. The gateway 210 can route the data signal received from each base station 110 to another base station 110 or to the positioning node 140 or the GIS server 150 via the PDN 220. The gateway 210 can further route data signals received from the location determination node 140 or the GIS server 150 to the respective base stations 110-1 to 110-N associated with the destination user equipment 120, 130. In FIG. 2, the location node 140 is shown connected to the PLMN by the PDN 220, but in other embodiments, the location node 140 is internally connected to the PLMN as a component of the PLMN and traverses the PDN 220. It can also be that no messaging is required.

  FIG. 3 shows an example embodiment of the base station 110-1. The base stations 110-2 to 110-N can be similarly configured. The selective positioning node 140 and the selective GIS server 150 can be configured in the same manner, but the positioning node 140 and the GIS server 150 do not include the transmission / reception unit 305 according to some embodiments. It can be. The base station 110-1 can include, for example, a transmission / reception unit 305, a processing unit 310, a storage unit 315, an interface 320, and a bus 325. Furthermore, the base station 110 can be configured to measure and acquire the value of the propagation delay of the signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 to the base station 110, which will be described in detail later with reference to FIG. .

  The transmission / reception unit 305 may include a transmission / reception circuit that transmits and / or receives symbol sequences using radio frequency signals via one or more antennas. The one or more antennas can comprise a single antenna or an antenna array, and can comprise directional and / or omnidirectional antennas. In addition, the transmission / reception unit 305 includes one or two or more types such as measurement of Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) downlink reference signal transmit (DLRS) power in the base station 110-1. A measurement circuit capable of performing various E-UTRAN wireless fingerprint measurements can be provided.

  The processing unit 310 can include a processor, a microprocessor, or a processing circuit capable of interpreting and executing instructions. Further, the processing unit 310 can perform all data processing functions for the base station 110-1. The storage unit 315 can provide permanent, sequential or temporary storage of data and instructions used when the processing unit 310 performs device processing functions. The storage unit 315 may be a primary storage memory unit such as a processor register, a cache memory, or a random access memory (RAM). However, in some embodiments, the storage unit 315 includes a read only memory (ROM), an electrically erasable programmable read only memory (EEPROM), a programmable read only memory (PROM), and an erasable programmable read only memory (EPROM). memory), or a secondary memory unit such as a hard disk drive. However, the storage unit 315 may be an offline storage memory unit, a flash memory, a USB memory, a memory card, or the like in some embodiments. Furthermore, the storage unit 315 may be a NAS (Network-attached storage) in some embodiments, and may actually be another appropriate medium such as an optical recording medium and its corresponding drive, or It can be another disk, tape, or medium that can hold machine-readable data.

  The interface 320 may comprise circuitry that interfaces with a link that connects to the gateway 210. Bus 325 may interconnect the various components of base station 110-1 so that the components can communicate with each other.

  The configuration of the components of base station 110-1 shown in FIG. 3 is for illustration only. In addition, a configuration with more components, a configuration with fewer components, and a configuration with different components can be implemented.

  FIG. 4A illustrates a first user equipment 120 according to an example embodiment. The second user equipment 130 can be configured similarly. The first user device 120 can include, for example, a transmission / reception unit 405, a processing unit 410, a storage unit 415, an input device 420, an output device 425, and a bus 430. Furthermore, the first user equipment 120 can be configured to measure and acquire the value of the propagation delay of the signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 to the base station 110, which will be described in detail later with reference to FIG. explain.

  The transmission / reception unit 405 can include a transmission / reception circuit that transmits and / or receives a symbol sequence using a radio frequency signal via one or more antennas. The transmission / reception unit 405 can include, for example, a RAKE receiver or a GRAKE receiver. In addition, the transmission / reception unit 405 may include a measurement circuit capable of performing one or more various E-UTRAN wireless fingerprint measurements based on, but not limited to, one or more of the following. Signal propagation measurement, signal propagation delay, round trip time measurement, E-UTRA reference signal received power (RSRP). E-UTRA carrier received signal strength indicator (E-UTRA carrier RSSI). E-UTRA reference signal reception quality (RSRQ). Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA) UTRA Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) Common Pilot Channel (CPICH) Received Signal Code Power (RSCP). WCDMA UTRA FDD carrier RSSI. WCDMA UTRA FDD CPICH Ec / No corresponding to the received energy for each chip divided by the power density in the band. GSM carrier RSSI. Time division duplex (TDD) mode UTRA TDD carrier RSSI. UTRA TDD Primary Common Control Physical Channel (P-CCPCH) RSCP. CDMA2000 1x Radio Transmission Technology (1xRRT) pilot strength. And / or CDMA2000 High Rate Packet Data pilot strength.

  The processing unit 410 can include a central processing unit (CPU), a processor, a microprocessor, or a processing circuit capable of interpreting and executing instructions. The processing unit 410 can perform all data processing functions for data interpretation, output, and processing including data buffering, and device control functions such as call processing control and user interface control.

  The storage unit 415 can provide permanent, sequential, or temporary storage of data and instructions used when the processing unit 410 performs device processing functions. The storage unit 415 may include a mass storage device such as ROM, RAM, magnetic and / or optical recording media, and / or other types of memory devices. The input device 420 can include a mechanism for inputting data to the user equipment 120, 130. The keypad allows manual user input of data to the user equipment 120, 130. The microphone can include a mechanism for converting the voice input into an electrical signal. The display can comprise a screen display that can provide a user interface that can be used by a user to select a device function, such as a graphical user interface. The display screen display may include any type of visual display, such as a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma screen display, a light-emitting diode (LED) display, a cathode ray tube (CRT). Ray Tube) displays, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, and the like.

  The output device 425 can comprise a mechanism for outputting data in an audio format, a video format, and / or a hard copy format. For example, the output device 425 can comprise a speaker with a mechanism for converting electrical signals into audio output. The output device 425 may further include a display unit that displays output data to the user. For example, the display unit can provide a graphical user interface that displays output data to the user. Bus 430 may interconnect various components of user equipment 120 to allow the components to communicate with each other.

  The configuration of the components of base station 120 shown in FIG. 4A is for illustration only. In addition, a configuration with more components, a configuration with fewer components, and a configuration with different components can be implemented. For example, in some embodiments, the user equipment 120, 130 may include a GPS location measurement device or may be connected to an attached GPS location measurement device.

  FIG. 4B shows an example embodiment of user equipment 120, 130, which includes a cellular radiotelephone. As shown in FIG. 4B, the user equipment 120, 130 includes, for example, a microphone 435 of an input device 420 that inputs audio information to the user equipment 120, a speaker 440 of an output device 425 that provides audio output from a wireless telephone, for example, Keypad 445 of input device 420 for manual entry of data and selection of telephone functions, for example, data can be visually displayed to the user, and / or user can enter data and select telephone functions in conjunction with keypad 445 The input device 420 and the display 450 of the output device 425 can be provided.

  FIG. 5 is a combination of signaling and flowcharts illustrating transmission of signal 510 from user equipment 120, 130 to base station 110 in a cell of network 135. User equipment 120, 130 may transmit signal 510 at a location point in the cell, which is received by base station 110. This signal 510 is used to estimate the signal propagation time of the signal 510 transmitted from the user equipment 120, 130 to the base station 110.

  The one-way propagation delay of signal 520 transmitted between user equipment 120 and base station 110 can be measured at base station 110 with measurement 520. The same propagation delay can be used for both uplink and downlink.

  In some embodiments, for example, in a UTRAN system, the one-way propagation delay can be defined as the PTRACH propagation delay in both WCDMA and UTRA TDD. Thus, the one-way propagation delay can be measured at the base station 110 during the random access process. The purpose of this measurement 520 in WCDMA may be to adjust the receiver window for the path search. This may be particularly useful in extended range cells because the base station 110 can use a narrow searcher by positioning the window according to the arrival time of the route, thanks to this measurement.

  According to some other embodiments, for example, in E-UTRAN, a user on a physical uplink control channel, such as physical random access channel PRACH or E-UTRAN PUCCH, to request scheduling grants as described further below. One-way propagation delay can be measured 520 at the base station 110 as the device transmits a signal.

  User equipment 120, 130 may transmit PRACH during initial access to transition from idle mode to connected mode in some embodiments. In addition, the user equipments 120 and 130 can transmit PRACH even in connected mode in the target cell, and can acquire synchronization during handover. In any case, PRACH transmission occurs at a fixed time relative to the downlink frame timing of the cell. Because of this fixed time relationship, the one-way propagation delay has a timing error in addition to the fixed time. Base station 110 may conveniently measure 520 this while receiving the PRACH. The frame timing of the target cell can be obtained by the user equipment 120, 130 during the cell search procedure.

  Note also that in E-UTRAN, there are only two radio resource control (RRC) states: idle and connected. If there is some movement, then the user equipment 12, 130 in connected mode is in idle mode. However, it returns to connection mode again by normal random access transmission. That is, in some embodiments, for all transitions from idle mode to connected mode, the network 135 may measure the one-way propagation delay.

  E-UTRAN is a packet-oriented system, but the user equipment 120, 130 may not continuously transmit or receive data or control signaling in connected mode. Further, the user devices 120 and 130 may operate in a discontinuous (DRX) mode in the connection mode. By way of example only, a DRX cycle of 1.28 seconds can be used when receiving packet data. Furthermore, in E-UTRAN, the network 135 allocates radio resources to the user equipment 120, 130 for uplink transmission on demand. In order to allow fast access to radio resources for uplink transmission, user equipment 120, 130 may request scheduling grant at any time. For example, the user equipment 120, 130 can request permission for onset of data arrival in its buffer. User equipment 120, 130 may send an uplink control channel or physical uplink control channel (PUCCH) scheduling request. Transmission on the PUCCH can be performed at a fixed time related to the downlink frame timing of the cell. Thus, similar to the case of PRACH transmission, according to some embodiments, when user equipment 120, 130 transmits PUCCH, base station 110 can also measure 520 one-way propagation delay. During this unilateral PUCCH transmission, the base station 110 cannot estimate the round trip propagation delay. On the other hand, it can be measured during normal uplink and downlink transmission resume.

  The network 135 can adjust the timing of the uplink channel including the PUCCH by signaling the timing advance to the user equipments 120 and 130. However, due to packet mode and DRX operation, the PUCCH can be transmitted after a long period of inactivity. Over time, the one-way propagation delay may also change. Thus, the offset in PUCCH reception time has additional propagation delay in addition to net timing advance or net adjustment time.

  Therefore, in summary, as a feature of E-UTRAN packet directivity, continuous uplink transmission and downlink transmission cannot always be performed. This in turn prevents the network 135 from making a continuous measurement 520 of the one-way propagation delay. However, on the other hand, with relatively more frequent PRACH and unidirectional uplink control channels such as PUCCH signals, the network 135 would be able to make one-way propagation delay measurements 520 more frequently.

  After performing the signal propagation time measurement 520 at the base station 110, the base station 110 transmits 530 the measured signal propagation time value to the user equipment 120, 130 according to some embodiments.

  According to some embodiments, signal propagation time measurements are signaled to user equipment 120, 130 via a radio resource control (RRC) protocol or Layer 3 in a WCDMA system. Alternatively, it can also be signaled via medium access control (MAC) or layer 2. It is also possible to transmit this measurement value in an application mapped to the user plane.

  According to some embodiments, the measured signal propagation time can be reported 540 to the positioning node 140.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method in the base station 110 for signaling a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 to the base station 110. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. Base station 110 and user equipment 120 are included in wireless communication system 100. Furthermore, the base station 110 and the user equipment 120 exchange radio signals.

  In order to properly signal the value of the propagation delay, the method can include a number of steps 601-603. However, it should be noted that some of the described method steps are optional and are included only in some embodiments. The method steps 601 to 603 can be performed in an arbitrary time series, and some of them, for example, step 602 and step 603, or all the steps can be performed simultaneously, or It should also be noted that this can be done with a modified time series, an arbitrarily reconstructed time series, a time series that has been decomposed, or completely reversed. The method includes the following steps.

Step 601
A signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 is received.

Step 602
The signal propagation delay value of the received signal is measured. Measurement is performed at the base station 110. In order to measure the signal propagation delay of the received signal, the time when the signal was transmitted and the time when the signal was received can be obtained.

Step 603
The measured value is transmitted to user equipment 120 and / or position determination node 140 included in wireless communication system 100.

  The measured signal propagation delay value can be transmitted using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.

  Reporting is a means by which transmission overhead can be reduced, but at the same time this measurement can be used as needed. Therefore, an optimal distribution of propagation delay to the user equipment 120 and / or the position determination node 140 is set. Transmission by this method may be based on any of three principles: periodic reporting, event triggering report, or event triggering periodic reporting. These three reporting method principles are described in further detail below.

Periodic report propagation delay can be reported at regular intervals when using periodic reports. Typically, according to some embodiments, the base station 110 can measure the one-way propagation delay when the user equipment 120 transmits, for example, a PRACH or other channel on the uplink. However, the base station 110 can also estimate the propagation delay during closed loop operation.

  The determination of the reporting rate in periodic reporting can be based on various parameters such as cell size, user equipment 120 position variation, user equipment 120 speed, and the like. Thus, according to some embodiments, transmission of measured signal propagation can occur periodically. The periodicity of transmission can be determined based on the group characteristics of the magnitude of the position variation of the user equipment 120, the speed of the user equipment 120, and the periodicity of the discontinuous reception cycle DRX.

  According to some embodiments, the network 135 can set some fixed periodic transmission rate, eg, depending on the cell size. Thus, in large cells, assuming that the user equipment 120 moves faster, signaling may occur more frequently and vice versa.

  However, according to some embodiments, the reporting rate can be set as a function of position variation. According to these embodiments, the network 135 can adjust or modify the reporting rate in response to changes in the location of the user equipment 120 over the last monitoring period. For example, if the user equipment 120 does not change position significantly over time, the transmission rate, i.e., propagation delay signaling, may decrease. The network 135 can also perform a double check by comparing previously transmitted propagation delay samples with the currently measured propagation delay samples. If the position of the user equipment 120 has not changed significantly, both measurement samples will be in the same range. However, the reverse is not necessarily true. Even if the location of the user equipment 120 varies over time, the propagation delay may still be in the same range.

  This approach can reduce signaling overhead while tracking the location of the user equipment 120 with the required accuracy.

  According to some embodiments, the reporting rate can be a function of the speed of the user equipment 120. According to some embodiments, the network 135 can adjust or modify the reporting rate depending on the speed of the user equipment 120. It can be assumed that the transmission regarding the propagation delay can be performed more frequently when the speed of the user equipment 120, that is, the variation of the geographical position is high.

  According to some embodiments, the reporting rate may be a function of the DRX cycle. If DRX is used, the network 135 can signal the propagation delay to the user equipment 120 at most once for each DRX. Thus, in DRX mode, which can be employed in connected mode, network 135 can adjust the periodic reporting rate as a function of DRX cycle with some degree of effectiveness.

  Regardless of whether DRX is used, according to some embodiments, the base station 110 can make a one-way propagation delay measurement whenever an uplink transmission occurs. Note that uplink transmission can be done independently of the DRX cycle. Thus, the network 135 can signal the propagation delay to the location node 140 at a rate that is independent of the DRX cycle in operation.

Event Triggering However, according to some embodiments, the transmission can also be performed in an event triggering manner. Thus, the propagation delay can be signaled depending on the event that occurs. The event can be, for example, after measurement of propagation delay or when the position variation of the user equipment 120 exceeds a certain threshold.

  An event may occur at the base station 110, which performs a one-way propagation delay measurement. In UTRAN, the RNC can configure such events at the base station 110, ie, the user equipment 120 that receives measurements by event and the NodeB that transmits measurements at the location node 140. In E-UTRAN, this may be an internal event at the eNodeB 110. That is, the user equipment 120 and the position determination node 140 that receive measurement values according to events can be configured.

  According to some embodiments, the propagation delay can be signaled to user equipment 120 and / or positioning node 140 after the propagation delay is measured. According to these embodiments, whenever the base station 110 makes a propagation delay measurement, the propagation delay can be transmitted, especially during reception of the PRACH or other unilateral control channel on the uplink.

  According to some embodiments, a propagation delay can be transmitted to user equipment 120 and / or positioning node 140 when one variation of user equipment 120 exceeds a threshold. According to these embodiments, the network 135 can transmit a propagation delay if the location of the user equipment 120 has fluctuated beyond a certain threshold level. Similarly, if the location of the user equipment 120 has not changed at a predetermined time, the network 135 may not newly transmit a propagation delay value. The network 135 may also perform a double check by comparing the previously signaled propagation delay sample with the currently measured propagation delay sample. If the position of the user equipment 120 has not changed significantly, it can be expected that both measurement samples will be found in the same range. However, the reverse is not necessarily true. Therefore, even if the position of the user equipment 120 varies with time, the propagation delay may still be in the same range.

Event-induced periodic reporting According to some embodiments, propagation delay reporting can occur periodically after an event occurs. The triggering event may be, for example, when a variation in propagation delay exceeds a certain threshold, when a variation in the position of the user device 120 exceeds a certain threshold, or when the speed of the user device 120 exceeds a certain threshold. it can.

  According to some embodiments, the step of transmitting the measured signal propagation delay value can be performed periodically when a threshold limit value is exceeded. When the threshold limit value is not exceeded, transmission can be performed by an event triggering method.

  According to some embodiments, the threshold limit value relates to a second node parameter in the group of signal propagation delay, magnitude of position variation of user equipment 120, speed of user equipment 120.

  According to some embodiments, propagation delay reporting can be performed when propagation delay variation exceeds a certain threshold limit. If a significant change is detected in the propagation delay measured at a given time, according to some embodiments, the network 135 can initiate periodic reporting of the signal propagation delay.

  Thus, according to some embodiments, the network 135 can initiate periodic reporting of measured propagation delays when the variation in the position of the user equipment 120 exceeds a certain threshold limit. The threshold limit value can be predetermined and set by the network 135.

  According to some embodiments, the network 135 can revert to event reporting if the variation in the location of the user equipment 120 falls below another threshold at a predetermined time.

  According to some embodiments, the network 135 can initiate periodic reporting of propagation delays when the speed of the user equipment 120 exceeds a threshold limit value at a predetermined time. The network 135 "can return to the event report if the speed variation of the user equipment 120 falls below another threshold at a given time.

  The speed of the user equipment 120 can be determined in several ways. The speed of the user equipment 120 can be tracked in the base station 110, for example, by measuring the Doppler frequency of the user equipment 120 of interest.

Propagation delay can be reported for UTRAN chip count and / or as a function of E-UTRAN cyclic prefix. The lengths of a normal control plane (CP) and an extended control plane in E-UTRAN are about 5 and 16 μs, respectively. Propagation delay can be very fine, so E-UTRAN can also report on the number of CPs (N). However, the rule for deriving the actual propagation delay (D _p ) can be determined as follows.
D _p = 2 ^kxN
Here, N is an integer that can take any positive or negative value, and k is a constant. Another option could be to report on a nanosecond or microsecond scale.

  According to some embodiments, several different reports can be made after reporting the absolute value of the propagation delay. The difference means the difference between the previous absolute propagation delay and the current absolute propagation delay, for example ΔN in the case of E-UTRAN. One bit may be required to indicate whether the reported quality is absolute or differential.

  According to some embodiments, the base station 110 may be represented by an evolved nodeB, eNodeB, and the wireless communication system 100 may be represented by an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network E-UTRAN.

  However, according to some embodiments, the base station 110 may be represented by a nodeB and the wireless communication system 100 may be represented by a universal terrestrial radio access network UTRAN.

  User equipment 120 may be represented by a mobile phone, according to some embodiments.

  In order to perform the method steps described above, the base station 110 comprises the configuration 700 shown in FIG. Configuration 700 is configured to transmit a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from user equipment 120 to base station 110. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. Base station 110 and user equipment 120 are included in wireless communication system 100. In addition, the base station 110 and the user equipment 120 exchange radio signals.

  The configuration 700 includes a receiving unit 701. The receiving unit 701 receives a signal transmitted from the user device 120. Furthermore, the configuration 700 includes a measurement unit 702. The measurement unit 702 measures the value of the signal propagation delay of the received signal. Furthermore, the configuration 700 includes a signaling unit 703. The signaling unit 703 signals the measured value to the user equipment 120 and / or the position determination node 140 included in the wireless communication system 100.

  For example, internal electronic devices that are not necessarily required to perform the method according to method steps 601-603, such as some of the internal electronic devices of base station 110 shown in FIG. 3, have been omitted from FIG. 7 for clarity. Please note that.

  The measurement unit 702 is provided in the configuration 700 in the base station 110, but can be a processing unit.

  According to some embodiments, the transmission unit 703 may be configured to transmit the measured signal propagation delay value using a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol protocol.

  According to some embodiments, the transmission unit 703 may be configured to periodically transmit the measured signal propagation delay value. The periodicity can be determined based on the position variation magnitude of the user equipment 120, the speed of the user equipment 120, and the nature of the periodicity group of the discontinuous reception cycle DRX.

  However, according to some embodiments, the transmission unit 703 can be configured to transmit the measured signal propagation delay value in an event-induced manner. The trigger event can be, for example, a measurement of a signal propagation delay or a detection of a position change of the user equipment 120 that exceeds a certain threshold.

  According to some embodiments, the transmission unit 703 may be configured to signal the measured signal propagation delay value in an event-induced periodic manner.

  Further, according to some embodiments, the transmitter 703 may be configured to periodically signal the measured signal propagation delay value when the threshold limit value is exceeded. Alternatively, when the threshold limit value is not exceeded, the transmission unit 703 may be configured to transmit the measured signal propagation delay value by an event induction method.

  According to some embodiments, the threshold limit value relates to a second node parameter in a group of signal propagation delay, magnitude of position variation of user equipment 120, speed of user equipment 120.

  It should be noted that the units 701-703 provided in the configuration 700 at the base station 110 are considered separate logic circuits, but need not be considered separate objects. Some or all of the units 701 to 703 may be provided in the same physical unit or may be configured in common. However, in order to facilitate understanding of the function of the configuration 700 in the base station 110, the provided units 701 to 703 are shown as separate physical units in FIG.

  As an example of the latter, according to some embodiments, the reception unit 701 and the transmission unit 703 can be provided in one physical unit transmission / reception unit. The transmission / reception unit can include a transmission circuit and a reception circuit, each transmitting an outgoing radio frequency signal to the user equipment 120 and receiving an incoming radio frequency signal from the user equipment 120 via an antenna. The antenna can be a built-in antenna, a retractable antenna, or any antenna known to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. Radio frequency signals transmitted between the user equipment 120 and the base station 110 can include both traffic signals and control signals. Examples include paging signals / messages for incoming calls, establishing and maintaining voice call communication with another party, and sending and / or receiving data such as SMS, email, MMS messages with another remote user equipment 130. Can be used for

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart illustrating a method in user equipment 120 for obtaining a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted to base station 110. User equipment 120 may be a mobile phone, for example. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. The base station 110 can be a NodeB or an eNodeB, for example. Base station 110 and user equipment 120 are included in wireless communication system 100. The radio communication system 100 can be, for example, UTRAN or EUTRAN. Furthermore, the base station 110 and the user equipment 120 exchange radio signals.

  In order to properly obtain the value of the propagation delay, the method can include a number of steps 801-802. However, it should be noted that some of the described method steps are optional and are included only in some embodiments. Further, the method steps 801 to 802 can be performed in an arbitrary time series, and the steps 801 and 802 can be performed at the same time, or a changed time series and an arbitrarily reconfigured time series. It should also be noted that it can also be done in time series, disassembled or completely reversed. The method includes the following steps.

Step 801
A signal is transmitted to the base station 110.

Step 802
A value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal is received.

  According to some embodiments, the step of receiving 802 the value of the signal propagation delay can be performed using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.

  FIG. 9 schematically illustrates one embodiment of a configuration 900 for user equipment 120. The configuration 900 is configured to acquire the value of the propagation delay of the signal transmitted to the base station 110. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. User equipment 120 and base station 110 are included in wireless communication system 100. In addition, the base station 110 and the user equipment 120 exchange radio signals.

  The configuration 900 includes a transmission unit 901. The transmission unit 901 transmits a signal to the base station 110. Furthermore, the configuration 900 includes a receiving unit 902. The receiving unit 902 receives the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal.

  For example, internal electronic devices that are not necessarily required to perform the method according to method steps 801-802, such as some of the internal electronic devices of user equipment 120 shown in FIG. 4, are omitted in FIG. 9 for clarity. Please note that.

  It should be noted that the described units 901 and 902 provided in configuration 900 at user equipment 120 are considered separate logic circuits, but need not necessarily be considered separate objects. The transmission unit 901 and the reception unit 902 can be provided in the same physical unit or can be configured in common. As an example of the latter, according to some embodiments, the transmission unit 901 and the reception unit 902 can be provided in one physical unit transmission / reception unit. The transmission / reception unit can include a transmission circuit and a reception circuit, each transmitting a transmission radio frequency signal to the base station 110 and receiving an incoming radio frequency signal from the base station 110 via an antenna. The antenna can be a built-in antenna, a retractable antenna, or any antenna known to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the present invention. Radio frequency signals transmitted between the user equipment 120 and the base station 110 can include both traffic signals and control signals. Examples include paging signals / messages for incoming calls, establishing and maintaining voice call communication with another party, and sending and / or receiving data such as SMS, email, MMS messages with another remote user equipment 130. Can be used for

  FIG. 10 is a flowchart illustrating a method in the positioning node 140 for obtaining a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 to the base station 110. User equipment 120 may be a mobile phone, for example. The base station 110 can be a NodeB or an eNodeB, for example. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. Base station 110, user equipment 120, and position determination node 140 are included in wireless communication system 100. The radio communication system 100 can be, for example, UTRAN or EUTRAN. Furthermore, the base station 110, the user equipment 120, and the position determination node 140 are assumed to exchange radio signals.

  In order to properly obtain the value of the propagation delay, the method can include method step 1001.

Step 1001
A signal propagation delay value of a signal transmitted between the user equipment 120 and the base station 110 is received from the base station 110.

  According to some embodiments, the step of receiving 1001 the value of the signal propagation delay can be performed using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.

  FIG. 11 schematically illustrates one embodiment of a configuration 1100 in the location determination node 140. Configuration 1100 is configured to acquire a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from user equipment 120 to base station 110. User equipment 120 may be a mobile phone, for example. The base station 110 can be a NodeB or an eNodeB, for example. User equipment 120 is associated with a location point. Base station 110, user equipment 120, and position determination node 140 are included in wireless communication system 100. The radio communication system 100 can be, for example, UTRAN or EUTRAN. Furthermore, the base station 110, the user equipment 120, and the position determination node 140 are assumed to exchange radio signals.

  The configuration 1100 includes a receiving unit 1101. The receiving unit 1101 receives the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal.

  Note that internal electronics that are not necessarily required to perform the method according to method step 1101 have been omitted from FIG. 11 for clarity.

Some specific embodiments The present method for transmitting and obtaining the value of the propagation delay of a signal transmitted from the user equipment 120 to the base station 110, respectively, includes the base station 110, the user equipment 120, and / or It can be implemented by one or more processors in the positioning node 140 together with computer program code that performs the functions of the method. The program code described above can also be provided as a computer program product, for example in the form of a data carrier with computer program code that performs the method according to the respective method steps when loaded into a processor unit. The data carrier can be, for example, a CD ROM disk, a memory stick, or other suitable medium such as a disk or tape that can hold machine-readable data. Further, the computer program code may be provided as pure program code for the server and downloaded remotely to base station 110 and / or user equipment 120 and / or positioning node 140.

  Thus, a computer readable medium encoded with a computer program that transmits a value of propagation delay of a signal transmitted from user equipment 120 to base station 110 can perform the method according to method steps 601-603.

  Also, therefore, a computer readable medium encoded with a computer program that transmits a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from user equipment 120 to base station 110 can perform the method according to method steps 801-802.

  Also, therefore, a computer readable medium encoded with a computer program that transmits a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from user equipment 120 to base station 110 can perform the method according to method step 1101.

Claims (25)

A method in the base station (110) for transmitting a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from a user equipment (120) to a base station (110) associated with a location point, the base station (110) and the user The device (120) is included in the wireless communication system (100) and exchanges wireless signals, the method comprising:
Receiving (601) a signal transmitted from the user equipment (120) associated with the location point;
Measuring the value of the signal propagation delay of the received signal (602);
Transmitting (603) the measured value to the user equipment (120) and / or to a positioning node (140) included in the wireless communication system (100). Method.   The method of claim 1, wherein transmitting (603) the measured value of the signal propagation delay is performed using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step of transmitting (603) the measured value of the signal propagation delay is performed periodically.   The step (603) of transmitting the measured value of the signal propagation delay includes the magnitude of the position variation of the user equipment (120), the speed of the user equipment (120), or the periodicity of the discontinuous reception cycle DRX. 4. The method of claim 3, wherein the method is performed with a periodicity determined based on the nature of the group.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step (603) of transmitting the measured value of the signal propagation delay is performed in an event-triggered manner.   6. The method of claim 5, wherein the triggering event is a measurement of signal propagation delay or when a position variation of the user equipment (120) exceeding a certain threshold is detected.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the step (603) of transmitting the measured value of the signal propagation delay is performed in an event-induced periodic manner.   The step (603) of transmitting the measured value of the signal propagation delay is periodically performed when a threshold limit value is exceeded, and the step of transmitting the value of the measured signal propagation delay (603) includes: 8. A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the method is performed in an event triggered manner if the threshold threshold value is not exceeded.   The method of claim 8, wherein the threshold limit value relates to a second node parameter of a group of signal propagation delay, magnitude of the user equipment (120) position variation, or speed of the user equipment (120).   Any one of the preceding claims, wherein the base station (110) is represented by an evolved node BeNodeB and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network E-UTRAN. The method described in 1.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the base station (110) is represented by a NodeB and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by a universal terrestrial radio access network UTRAN.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the user equipment (120) is represented by a mobile phone. A configuration (700) in the base station (110) for transmitting a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from a user equipment (120) related to a location point to a base station (110), the base station (110) And the user equipment (120) is included in the wireless communication system (100) and exchanges radio signals, and the configuration (700) includes:
A receiver (701) for receiving a signal transmitted from the user equipment (120) associated with the location point;
A measurement unit (702) for measuring the value of the signal propagation delay of the received signal;
A transmitter (703) for transmitting the measured value to the user equipment (120) and / or to a positioning node (140) included in the wireless communication system (100). Configuration to do. A method in a user equipment (120) associated with a location point for obtaining a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted to a base station (110), wherein the user equipment (120) and the base station (110) are wireless. Included in a communication system (100) for exchanging radio signals, said method comprising:
Transmitting a signal (801) to the base station (110);
Receiving the value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal (802).   15. The method of claim 14, wherein receiving (802) the value of the signal propagation delay is performed using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.   The base station (110) is represented by an evolved node BeNodeB, and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network E-UTRAN. The method described in 1.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims 14 to 16, wherein the base station (110) is represented by a NodeB and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by a universal terrestrial radio access network UTRAN.   The method according to any one of claims 14 to 17, wherein the user equipment (120) is represented by a mobile phone. A configuration (900) in a user equipment (120) for obtaining a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted to a base station (110), wherein the user equipment (120) is associated with a location point and the user equipment (120) and the base station (110) are included in the wireless communication system (100) and exchange radio signals, and the configuration (900) includes:
A transmission unit (901) for transmitting a signal to the base station (110);
And a receiving unit (902) for receiving the value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal. A method in a positioning node (140) for obtaining a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from a user equipment (120) to a base station (110), wherein the user equipment (120) is associated with a location point. The user equipment (120), the base station (110), and the location determination node (140) are included in a wireless communication system (100) for exchanging wireless signals, the method comprising:
Receiving the value of the signal propagation delay of the transmitted signal (1001)
A method characterized by comprising:   21. The method of claim 20, wherein receiving (1001) the value of the signal propagation delay is performed using one of a radio resource control protocol or a medium access protocol.   The base station (110) is represented by an evolved node BeNodeB, and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by an evolved universal terrestrial radio access network E-UTRAN. The method described in 1.   The method according to any one of the preceding claims 30 to 21, wherein the base station (110) is represented by a NodeB and the wireless communication system (100) is represented by a universal terrestrial radio access network UTRAN.   24. A method according to any one of claims 20 to 23, wherein the user equipment (120) is represented by a mobile phone. A configuration (1100) in a positioning node (140) that obtains a propagation delay value of a signal transmitted from a user equipment (120) to a base station (110), wherein the user equipment (120) is associated with a location point. The user equipment (120), the base station (110), and the location determination node (140) are included in a wireless communication system (100) and exchange radio signals. 1100)
A receiving unit (1101) for receiving the signal propagation delay value of the transmitted signal
The structure characterized by having.

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